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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/24295384">The Adventures of Remus Lupin</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/17romanticovertures/pseuds/17romanticovertures'>17romanticovertures</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>F/M, Marauders Era (Harry Potter), So here we are, at first, eventually, i just adore lupin and want to write more, really not sure yet what this is gonna be, remus isn't shy, there might be a continuation after if i'm motivated</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-05-20</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-06-08</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-04 01:35:57</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>4</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>6,592</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/24295384</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/17romanticovertures/pseuds/17romanticovertures</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>The beginning of our little fruit lup's adventures</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Lily Evans Potter &amp; Severus Snape, Remus Lupin &amp; Lily Evans Potter, Sirius Black &amp; Remus Lupin &amp; James Potter, Sirius Black &amp; Remus Lupin &amp; Peter Pettigrew &amp; James Potter &amp; Lily Evans Potter</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Chapter 1</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>I just love Remus Lupin, haha. I'm not sure what this is going to be yet, but I'm hoping it'll take us through year one ish at least. There may be more after that. I certainly hope there will be. </p>
<p>These characters are not mine, but they own my heart anyway.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>It was about to be two weeks going until Remus Lupin’s fifth birthday, and he could not have been more excited. He had started a countdown in his head on day 20, and although he could not quite remember the order of those numbers with ‘teen on the end, he knew that two weeks from today he was going to turn five. Five was a big deal, his father Lyall had told him the other day. Five meant he could visit his father at work, and go with his mother to outings with friends, and just do all the things that he imagined five year olds did. To be completely honest, he was getting a little bored of sitting at home all of the time. They had been holed up in their cottage by the sea for all of three weeks now, and Remus was starting to get more than a little antsy. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>	He wasn’t entirely sure why they had been staying home, but he thought it had something to do with the whispered conversation he had overheard between his parents the night before they stopped going out. He couldn’t quite remember all of it, because every time his mother’s voice took on that worried tone he tried very hard to stop listening. From what he could remember, though, it sounded like his father was having an issue at work, and they had to hide at home until it went away. Remus remembered his dad saying the word “Greyback” over and over, and even though he didn’t have a clue what it meant the fear in his dad’s voice caused anxiety to bubble up in Remus every time he heard it since. And he had been hearing it since. When he tottered towards his parents’ bedroom a few nights later, he heard them whispering about it again.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>	“But Lyall, he wouldn’t come after us, would he?” His mother, Hope, said quietly. “This is all just precautionary, right?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>	“Yes, I think so.” He heard his father reply. “But after what I said to him in that interview, I don’t want to take any chances either.” Remus stopped walking, because even though the nightmare that had driven him from his bed still caused his heart to pound a little, he really wanted to hear what his father had said. His dad never said anything mean to anyone, he barely liked talking to the man at the supermarket when they bought their groceries. He was shyer than Remus, sometimes, and Remus was four! So, Remus strained his ears to hear just a little better (not that ears can really strain, but Remus, being four, still thought it might help). </p>
<p> </p>
<p>	His father’s voice had taken on a tone Remus hadn’t heard before, and it made his words that much stranger. “I told him that his kind were vicious and violent, Dark creatures. I went against everything I have worked to understand. I was hateful, and though he deserved it I still shouldn’t have said it.” His mother’s voice cut through again. “But surely he’s heard it all before?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>	“Yes, but not when under pressure like that.” His father replied. “Mark told me afterwards that Greyback hasn’t taken well to insults in the past, particularly when from the ministry. And since we couldn’t attach him to those attacks, I was frustrated, and I insulted his entire being. I wouldn’t blame him if he came after me, but I couldn’t live with myself if he did anything to you two.” <br/>	Remus, by then, had forgotten about his nightmare. It seemed like his parents were thinking far too much to deal with his fears, anyway, so he turned around and went back to his room. He climbed back into bed, turned to face the wall, and went back to sleep. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>	Since then, nothing eventful had happened. It had been 12 days, and it was two days until Remus’ birthday. He was still trying to talk his parents into doing something outside the house, but it had seemed less and less likely as the days wore on. They had apologized at dinner, and promised that it would only be a little while longer, but he was sure that it would be an awfully boring birthday at home with only his family. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>	Because of the talk at dinner, Remus was upset when he got ready for bed and was having trouble falling asleep. He tossed and turned in his bed, the light of the full moon far too bright outside his window for anyone to sleep with. He always hated full moon nights, because of that. The way their house was built, his window faced the moon as it rose in the sky. So, when it was especially dark, and the moon was especially bright, it was like someone was shining a lit wand directly in his face. Remus turned and faced the wall, like he always did, but it was still extremely bright in his room for the hour of the night. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>	But suddenly, the light that was disrupting his sleep vanished. “Must’ve been a cloud,” Remus thought to himself, and shut his eyes tight, trying to go to sleep before the cloud moved past and the moon came back to haunt him. He heard a scraping noise outside his window, then, but chalked it up to wind blowing the tree outside their house up against the roof. He had almost won, had almost fallen asleep, when his life as he knew it ended. All at once, his room felt like it exploded. His window, and most of the wall around it, burst apart, and some gigantic beast burst in. There was a moment where four-year-old Remus thought he actually had fallen asleep and this was some kind of horrible new nightmare his brain had come up with. He faintly heard his parents shouting, feet pounding outside in the hall, before he blinked and the beast leapt at him. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>	Remus had never known pain like it. It seemed like it had more teeth and claws than were possible for an animal as they tore into him. It bit into his shoulder, and he screamed. It tore up the sheets and mattress around him as it threw him around, and when it released him Remus was almost certain that he wasn’t going to live longer than his parents. That is a horrifying though for anyone, especially at four. But then his father burst through the door, and shouted a spell at the creature. It seemed to stun the beast, and the second one his father fired off sent it loping back off into the night. But Remus could have sworn it looked back at him before it disappeared completely, teeth bared in a sort of horrifying snarl that could almost have been mistaken as a smile. When it turned around again, he saw the streaks of light grey through the dark shaded fur that covered the rest of it, and he knew what the Greyback his parents had been talking about was. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>	His father stood there in shock for a moment, until his mother came running in frantically. “Remus, Remus!” It seemed like she was shouting from the panic on her face, but to Remus she kept getting quieter. He felt himself slipping back into unconsciousness, into that sleep that just minutes before had been the only thought in his head. The last thing he remembered was his mother, plucking a bit of grey fur out of a cut on his abdomen.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Chapter 2</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Five and a Half Years Later</p><p> </p><p>	Remus lay on the floor of his most recent bedroom, the fifth one that he had inhabited in the past two years. Shutting the book he had just started, he looked around at the bareness of the room he was in. Although his parents hadn’t noticed yet, Remus was starting to learn how to best handle their lives and manage the constant changes they endured. One such new tactic: he had almost stopped calling the places where he slept “his room” out loud, because it made him feel as though he had gotten too comfortable. It was easier to not get attached to any given place, because there would just be less to be sad about when they inevitably had to move on, again. </p><p> </p><p>	The first few times had been harder on Remus, and hard on his parents, too. It started with the whispers. People looking at him sideways as they passed. That was always the first indicator, that something had to change soon. Sometimes Remus would notice it before his parents. He had quickly come to recognize distrust in people, and had gotten really good at telling people’s feelings through their eyes. People rarely had to say anything to him anymore before he knew how they felt about him. His parents, though, always seemed to hold on to a hope that they could keep him, and what they called “his condition,” hidden. On the rare occasions where they would walk about the town, sometimes they wouldn’t notice the strange looks and fearful glances that grew the longer they stayed any given place. Remus always did, though. There were times when he mentioned it, and there were times that he didn’t. It was easier, once in a while, to let his parents make that decision for themselves. </p><p> </p><p>	This was one of those where he didn’t want to be the one to break it to them. They had ended up in a small village, somewhere in the North of England, and had been there for almost a month. It was a pretty short stint, for them, as they had been averaging about six months each stay before the whispers started again. His parents seemed to like this village, though, and Remus was actually pretty comfortable in the secluded home they were renting for the time being. When the full moon arrived each month, his parents shut him up in the basement and did their best to ensure that nothing went wrong. This month’s transformation had come and gone without any hitches (besides the usual ones, of course), so Remus couldn’t understand why the town’s residents had noticed so quickly. He decided to not worry about it for the time being, though, and figured his parents would notice sooner or later. That was how things always ended up, and he held out no hopes that it would change anytime soon. </p><p> </p><p>	That was how he found himself sitting in his room, reading his third book in the last three days. He figured the less they saw of him, the less likely they were to notice strange behavior. His contentment quickly shifted into disappointment, though, when a knock at the door sounded. It was sharp and assured, much like those of all the ones before who had “come to tell the family something.” Remus sighed, preparing for the worst, and entered the living room to see his father opening the door to a tall, thin man with the longest hair Remus had ever seen (and a beard to match). He was dressed in Muggle attire, but the beard and his general demeanor told Remus this man was almost certainly a wizard, too. To avoid attracting attention, and to avoid staring much longer than he had already, Remus sat down in front of the fireplace and began fidgeting with his Gobstones set. He made sure to keep his back to the door, but they remained within earshot.</p><p> </p><p>	“Professor!” His father gasped, sounding equal parts fearful and reverent towards the man in the doorway. “It’s actually Headmaster, now, Lyall.” Remus heard the man respond, in quiet but commanding tones that clearly were used to getting the attention of a room. It wasn’t his voice though, but the subject of his father’s shocked exclamation caught Remus by surprise, as the prospect of school had not been on Remus’ radar since.. well, since shortly before his fifth birthday. What could a professor be doing at their house? More importantly, how did he even know they were here? Remus couldn’t help but be hopeful that the man might come in, as they hadn’t had a guest in their home for longer than he could remember.</p><p> </p><p>	“I’m really sorry, sir, but it isn’t the best time for us right now.” Remus turned to see his father, despite the height and presence of the man outside their house, standing in the doorway preventing his entrance. His mother came up behind, doing the same. “Nonsense,” the headmaster replied, waving a hand at them. “This won’t take much time at all.” </p><p> </p><p>	Remus jumped a little when the man suddenly appeared on the sofa just behind him. He turned, noticed his parents whirling around, and decided to take his chances. He held out a hand, saying, “It’s nice to meet you sir, I’m Remus Lupin. How do you know my father?” He met the man’s eyes, which were quite blue and almost twinkling at him, and were a sharp contrast to the grave expression he still wore on the rest of his face. They grasped hands, and Remus let go when he saw him begin to speak.</p><p> </p><p>	“It’s nice to meet you as well, Remus. I’m Albus Dumbledore, Headmaster at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. I taught your father, which is where we know each other from. Have you heard anything about our school from him?” </p><p> </p><p>	Remus was a bit wary at this point, because he and his parents had discussed Hogwarts at length before deciding there was no way he could safely attend school there without word of his condition spreading. He hesitated, as he did not want to reveal too much but felt a pull towards Dumbledore that he was having trouble resisting. It was like a kernel of hope had bloomed and walked through his front door, and was sitting on his sofa. </p><p> </p><p>	He took a breath, glanced at his father, and responded, “I’ve heard a little, sir. But I just don’t know how my going to school will work with our lifestyle.” That was as general an allusion as Remus could make, he thought, without giving away too much. Dumbledore smiled, and pulled an envelope out of his pocket. “Well, allow me to give you your invitation letter, anyway.” He said, handing it to Remus. He briefly stared in wonder at the ornate seal on the outside before ripping the letter open and scanning it quickly.</p><p> </p><p>	He heard his father step forward, as he was reading. “I’m sorry sir, but we decided that it would just not be feasible for us to send Remus to school right now. We’ve been through some things, in the past few years, and it doesn’t feel right to do it now, as much as I wish it for him.” He looked up to see Professor Dumbledore nodding somberly at his father before turning to him. When he met his eyes, though, they still were twinkling just as before. Dumbledore was certainly a harder man to read than Remus was used to, but he certainly didn’t seem like a man about to accept no for an answer. As Remus was thinking this, Professor Dumbledore smiled knowingly at him before looking back to his parents. </p><p> </p><p>	“I understand Lyall, but I think I should tell you that I already know about Remus and his condition, as I think you’ve been calling it.” Dumbledore said, causing equal looks of shock to appear on all three of the Lupin’s faces and that kernel of hope to grow, a little, in Remus’ chest. </p><p> </p><p>	Seeing they were listening closely now, Dumbledore continued. “I came here myself, to tell you that we actually have taken steps to allow Remus to undergo his transformations as safely as possible, at some distance from school grounds and from Hogsmeade. This, we hope, will keep Remus and everyone else safe. We also hope, that this will help you feel more comfortable about sending Remus to school. He belongs there, just as you did, and we want to have him at Hogwarts.”</p><p> </p><p>	Lyall just looked at him in disbelief, then turned first to Hope, then Remus. At the look of hope on Remus’ face, Lyall shrugged. “If you think it’ll be safe, I trust you. I want him to be happy, in any case,” he said, motioning to Remus. “It seems like this will allow that to be so.” Remus grinned, looking down at his letter. Perhaps things actually were about to change for the better.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>in my head young remus is far less shy than old remus, bc he's been so secluded and all that. but we're almost to Hogwarts yay! things are gonna change for our froot lup...</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Chapter 3</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Remus, like he had all those years ago, had been eagerly counting down the days until September 1st. He had a bit of an easier time with the ‘teens this go around, and no extreme attacks or disruptions of any kind. He was grateful for that. His parents, however, had spent the better part of the last month panicking about every little thing. His mother had packed and re-packed his trunk three separate times, confirming that the same book (which she was convinced they had forgotten) was there each time. His father was not quite so hands on, but Remus could see his panic in every line of his face. He paced more often, he sometimes would just grab Remus’ shoulder and hold it for a while, as though he was confirming that he was still there, and everything was still alright. But, while Remus was worried, mostly for their sakes and a little for his own, he could not hold back his excitement at what was lying in front of him. </p><p>	Hogwarts. School. Where he would make new friends, learn new things, develop control over the magic he knew he had but never really thought about. It made his condition feel almost second to the rest, for just a moment. When Remus remembered, he was filled with a brief but paralyzing anxiety that he had no means of coping with. The prospect of his classmates finding out about his condition, and fearing him, or even hating him, was horrifying. The idea that he could accidentally hurt one of them? Even worse. But Remus really had no experience to go on, here, besides sitting home alone. It seemed to him that school with a little danger and anxiety was better than nothing, so when he dealt with those attacks he just told himself to trust Dumbledore. It didn’t always help; sometimes the crushing panic and fears of the future weighed him down so heavily that he couldn’t move for a while. It was times like those, even when he came out of them, that he chose to wallow in his own misery for a little while. That always seemed like a better alternative to panicking about every last way the outside world could hurt him.</p><p>	But when September 1st arrived, one could not have told Remus apart from the fifty or so other eleven year olds loading trunks onto the train and milling around on the platform. His excitement was second to none, and he did his best to quell his parents’s anxieties before getting on the train. </p><p>	“I’ll be okay Mom! Please don’t worry.” Remus said, squirming as she wrapped him up in a tight hug and kissed his head. He pulled away and continued, “I’ll write as often as I can, I swear! I’ll let you know how everything goes after it happens.” She just half-smiled at him, and waved as she wrapped an arm around his father. </p><p>	“We love you, son. We’ll write too.” Lyall said, as Remus climbed onto the train. He turned back and waived at them, and walked away. Remus wandered down the corridors, looking for an empty-is compartment to sit in. His father had warned him to try to not attract too much attention if he could avoid it, and Remus really wanted to do so. So, when he saw the two boys sitting alone in one of the last available compartments on the train, he decided to take his chances. </p><p>	“Do you mind if I sit in here?” He asked, poking his head through the door. Both boys shrugged, and the one with shoulder length black hair, who looked as if he owned the compartment (perhaps the train itself, Remus thought), motioned toward the empty space next to him and said, “Not at all, please!” He had an air of having led events and spoken to everyone, despite them being eleven. Nevertheless, Remus wasn’t one to turn down an open seat, so he shrugged at the boys tone, half-smiled and took the seat. </p><p>	The other boy, with similarly dark hair and a face that seemed to be perpetually set in a state of mischief, leaned over to Remus. “I’m James,” he said. “James Potter.” Remus laughed at that, both at how much the introduction resembled James Bond and how hard the James in front of him was also trying to be cool and mysterious. He noticed, though, how his laugh almost instantly put James off, and quickly tried to rectify it. Remus leaned forward, holding out his hand. “Sorry, it just reminded me of 007 for a second,” he said sheepishly. “I’m Remus Lupin.” </p><p>	James seemed mollified, and even chuckled a little at himself when he realized. The boys shook hands, and Remus sat back with the thought that he might have just made his first friend in a while. </p><p>	But then Sirius opened his mouth again, and the moment was broken. “So what house is calling your name, Remus? My whole family is expected to be Slytherin but who knows what the day will bring?” Then, realizing his mistake, he added, “I’m Sirius Black, by the way.” </p><p>	Remus shrugged. He hadn’t really thought about it too much, and decided honesty was the way to go. “I haven’t really thought too much about it. What are the houses known for, again?” He didn’t miss the way both of the boys’s mouths dropped open at that, and thought he might have just been a bit too ignorant of the ways of his father’s world for a moment. </p><p>	James shook his head, clearing away the shock, and replied, “Well, Ravenclaws tend to be booky and intelligent, Hufflepuffs are known for loyalty, and Gryffindor is where dwell the brave and true.” He had obviously taken the last one out of a book somewhere, so his next words did not catch Remus by surprise. “I’m hoping for Gryffindor, like my dad. Hufflepuff is nice and all but it always seemed a bit fluffy to me, and I’ve no chance of being Ravenclaw,” he said, smiling. Remus thought about it a moment, then ventured out, “I’ve always loved reading, so I honestly might end up there. Beyond that I’ve no idea, though, really.” </p><p>	Sirius scoffed, saying “that must be nice, not knowing where you’re meant to be.” Remus recalled his earlier words about his family, and decided to be friendly (and hopefully move past Sirius’ off-putting demeanor). “Where are you hoping to end up, if not in Slytherin?” He asked. “Gryffindor would probably upset them the most, so probably there.” Sirius replied, shrugging. “Really anything besides that, though. I don’t think I could tolerate much more of their Slytherin pride. It’s bad enough when it isn’t directed at me.” Remus nodded at that, remembering his and his father’s conversation a week or so earlier about the negative elements of that particular house. When he came out of his thoughts to listen in again, he found that Sirius and James were talking about Quidditch. Remus didn’t know too much, but jumped in here and there when he knew what they were talking about. They passed the rest of the journey like that, and Remus found himself looking forward to what the year would hold. </p><p>                                                                                                                              ——</p><p>	They arrived at the station, climbed into the boats, and sailed toward the castle on the hill like nothing was different, but Remus knew better. Although everyone around him seemed equally in awe, none of them really knew how much of a blessing being where they were was. He alone knew what it meant, to be free to learn on your own, make friends on your own, even go outside on your own. It was different at home, but here he could sense a real chance for him to be seen as normal, and he was keen to hold onto that for as long as he could. Remus knew, though, it was only a matter of time before someone found out. He had been through it all too many times to hope otherwise. But he was excited to live in the moment for as long as he could, for perhaps the time during which nobody knew Remus as a werewolf he could start to see himself as normal, too.</p><p>	His neck had started to ache from craning it so much as he tried to take everything in all at once. There was just so much to see, though. Remus, and his new classmates, had just walked into the castle, were talked at by a stern looking woman who Remus was not particularly eager to get to know better. They were standing in front of the school, preparing to be sorted, when Remus’ brain finally re-entered his body from wherever semi-conscious space he had been inhabiting as he tried to make sense of his new world. He jumped a little, as it was a bit startling to find oneself in a large crowd when one was so used to being alone. It seemed he had missed more time than he realized, though, as before Remus knew it his name was being called and he was stumbling up towards the hat sitting on the stool and trying to act like he wasn’t terrified. Professor McGonagall (he remembered her name now that he was paying attention), placed the hat on his head. It was so large that it covered his eyes and during the few moments of silence before anything happened he had the feeling of things closing in on him. </p><p>	It was a bit shocking when the hat spoke, since Remus didn’t expect it and hearing that little voice in his ear was somewhat eerie, as though a creature were sitting on his shoulder. “Hmmmmm,” It seemed to be pondering something, although Remus wasn’t sure that hats were capable of such things. “You are an interesting one. A tough life, yes?” Remus hoped that he was the only one who could hear the hat’s musings, but he had to hope that Dumbledore wasn’t lying about protecting his secrets. Instead of replying, Remus just nodded. </p><p>	The hat went on, saying “You’ve got a good head on your shoulders, boy. With your intelligence, you’d do well in Ravenclaw. But there is something else there, isn’t there? Perhaps something you don’t even know yet. Better to challenge you, I suppose.” And with that, Remus heard the hat shout “GRYFFINDOR!” Light glared into his eyes as the hat was removed, and he was nudged gently down towards the cheering table of maroon and gold. He sat next to Sirius, the posh boy from the train, and shook hands with a few strangers. James eventually joined them, and when the last eleven year old was sent to the Hufflepuff table Remus sighed with contentment, and tucked into the wide spread in front of him. </p><p>	There was a chance he could have a normal year after all.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Chapter 4</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Remus makes new friends, without the help of his other ones.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I'm not totally happy with it, but I'm gonna post it anyway. Might change later...</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The next week or so flew by, events blurring together because so much happened all at once. It seemed as though it was less than an hour after the Sorting when Remus had moved into his dormitory, gotten his schedule, and was preparing to head to his first class. He knew multiple days had passed, but all the events at once was so much more than he was accustomed to that it felt as though time wasn't matching up with reality. Alongside all of this, though, Remus hadn’t quite escaped the out of body sensations that he had been experiencing since they first climbed into the boats. Now, though, they seemed to mostly be centered around the fact that Sirius and James wanted to hang out with him. It seemed like they considered him a friend, which was new. Remus had never really had friends, before. There were people he saw pass by regularly in the towns as he grew up, but they were never really his friends. He didn’t really know if that was something he could call James and Sirius, as he didn’t really know what it meant to be someone’s friend, but they certainly seemed to think of him as one. He didn’t mind it so much. </p><p>	They attended all of their classes together, and sat and goofed off through all of them. Well, James and Sirius goofed off. Remus tried to keep a balance, jumping between keeping his professors happy and keeping his new friends happy too. He wanted to do well in school, but he also didn’t want to lose the new and precious experience of having people like him for himself, without pretense. It was too rare in his life for him to risk it, so Remus sometimes would goof off in class with them too. They spent the better part of the next few days laughing and talking, meeting new classmates and finding ones they wanted to avoid. James was particularly attached to a red-headed first year Gryffindor called Lily, who seemed nice enough though Remus hadn’t gotten the chance to speak to her yet. James followed her around whenever he got the chance, and often dragged Sirius and Remus along too. Since Lily wasn’t too partial to James, though, Remus knew it wouldn’t be during one of those instances where he might actually get the chance to talk to her. He decided that he would do his best to get her alone, as he didn’t think he stood a chance of making another friend with the other two mucking about. </p><p>	While on this mission, Remus found himself spending a great deal of time in the library. Sirius and James wouldn’t be caught dead in there, so he figured it was his best chance to run into her. However, it seemed that Remus couldn’t catch a break. Every time he decided to go study for a while, he passed her leaving or she was with too many friends that it would have been strange for him to approach. Remus had basically given up hope, and resigned himself to the fact that he would be stuck watching James and Lily orbiting each other for the foreseeable future, with no say in the matter from either side. </p><p>	But, as these things tend to happen, once Remus had just about given up entirely he came across Lily entirely by chance sitting by herself in the back of the library. It was early morning on a Sunday, and most of the other students were sleeping in or recovering from the anticipation and adrenaline of their first Quidditch match from the previous day (it was brilliant and exhausting, but Remus had grown too much into the habit of waking up early to break it after one tiring day). He had awoken with the sun, dawdled for a bit in bed, then made up his mind to head to the library and start work on their Potions essay. All thoughts of homework vanished from his mind, though, when he saw Lily. Remus had noticed her a while earlier, and was somewhat embarrassed to admit that he had spent the better part of 15 minutes skulking in between the nearest shelves trying to come up with an excuse to go up and talk to her. He was struggling to come up with a reason, as he found it strange himself that he wanted to talk to her. His best friends bothered her constantly and he watched, and even with his little experience he knew that wasn’t the most sound basis for a friendship.</p><p>	Nevertheless, Remus was sorted into Gryffindor for a reason. Although he would never have called himself brave (or reckless), out loud, that reason found him striding towards her without a sound plan of approach, and a small part of him was nervous about her reaction. He walked up as confidently as he could, though, and said:</p><p>	“Hey Lily, do you mind if I sit here? I’ve no idea where to start on our Potions essay and you’re the best at it in our class.” Inwardly, he patted himself on the back for his ability to make something up under pressure. Even though it wasn’t a lie, as he had come to work on the essay and Lily was far better than anyone else in their class in Potions, he did have a pretty good idea where he wanted to start. It seemed like a good way to get her to allow him to sit, though, so Remus went with it. </p><p>	Lily, however, was a little suspicious. She looked up at him with narrowed eyes, and paused for a minute before she responded. “I suppose. It’s just you, now, huh? James and Sirius don’t have to do the essay too?” Remus figured she’d ask him about them, as he had never really interacted with her without the other two present. </p><p>	“They’re not starting on it until later, I don’t think. I just really didn’t know where to begin, so I thought I’d come and see if I could drum up any ideas before they started moving. It’s kind of hard to get anything done with them around, but I’m sure you’ve noticed that.” He replied, a little sheepishly. He felt bad for making fun of his friends, but it was honest. Remus didn’t think anything but honesty would get past Lily. From what he’d seen of her in class, she was kind to her friends but brutally honest. It was something he respected, as it seemed like she was never afraid to tell someone what she thought of them (even when she was telling James to shove off, in no uncertain terms). </p><p>	“Alright then.” Lily seemed okay with his presence once the threat of James and Sirius was gone. Remus sat down quickly, took out his papers and books, and started reading up on the ingredient Slughorn had assigned them to write on. He pointed out a confusing passage to Lily, asking for her clarification, and they set off into a really nice conversation about moonstones, the amount of homework they had, and what she did outside of class. Remus was thrilled that she had accepted his presence so readily after all of the bullying James and Sirius had put her through (with him at their backs), and was excited that she seemed to think spending time with him was worthwhile. He was equally thrilled that she didn’t mention Sirius and James’ behavior, or even his own complicity, because he didn’t know if he had a good explanation for it. So, he continued to work and chat here and there. </p><p>	Before he knew it, he had a pretty detailed outline of the moonstone essay and was confident he could finish it by the end of the week. As he settled in to start the introduction, a small boy with a narrow face walked up towards their table. He wasn’t walking, though, so much as he was scurrying. Remus had seen him around the common room and in the dormitory and in classes, but weirdly had never exchanged a word with him. It was like every time they walked into the room the boy shrank into something far too small to be noticed, and often would hurry out of the dormitory before anyone had woken up for the day.</p><p>	Lily looked up, and sighed. Remus glanced at her, then back at the boy, and realized he seemed to be heading for their table. His head turned back to Lily, and she whispered “That’s Peter. He’s been having a hard time in Potions and Slughorn asked me to tutor him when I had time. He doesn’t have many other friends so he comes by and asks questions a lot. He’s sweet, he’s just a lot to handle sometimes.” This was all said in one breath, and Remus was processing when the boy arrived at the other side of the table. </p><p>	When he opened his mouth, Remus was shocked to hear that his voice sounded exactly as he expected it to. Typically, when he met someone new, their voice never matched up to his expectations. It was always the one thing he could never predict, even though he was quite good at reading people. Peter’s voice, however, sounded just as small and tinny as his behavior and appearance seemed to indicated.</p><p>	“Hi Lily…” He squeaked out. “Do you have a chance to help me today?”</p><p>	Lily nodded. “Of course. I was just helping Remus get started with the moonstone essay as well. Maybe you guys could talk it out while I finish up my outline, and I can help when you’re done?” She told Peter, and turned toward Remus with the air of asking for help. He couldn’t say no, after all the help she had given him. </p><p>	Peter shrugged, and sat down next to him. He and Remus started working on the moonstone essay like they hadn’t just properly met for the first time. It was especially weird as they lived together, but Remus didn’t think now was the best time to draw attention to that. As they worked, he and Peter started talking about classes. Once he had gotten over Peter’s voice, he actually started to listen closely to what he was saying. He was funny and smart, and he really seemed like he didn’t have a lot of friends. He just kept talking about going about school by himself, and there often weren’t any companions in the stories he told. Remus felt badly then, as he knew what it was to be alone somewhere new. </p><p>	Lily, though, had finished up by then and was scooting over to take a look at what they had done. Peter turned to her eagerly, and Remus figured that his presence there probably wasn’t needed anymore. He started collecting his stuff and got up to leave, when Lily and Peter finally looked up from the work in front of them. </p><p>	Remus was surprised when Peter smiled at him and thanked him for his help, as before that morning he had barely exchanged two words with the boy since they had arrived. He wasn’t upset, though. The time studying made Remus realize that Peter wasn’t unkind, just a bit unsure of how to handle himself around others. Remus could understand that. He hadn’t made a friend until he had literally stumbled across two of them, hadn’t he? He decided then and there he would go back to the dormitory and convince James and Sirius to strike up a conversation with Peter the next time they saw him. He deserved to have friends just as much as Remus did, he thought. </p><p>	It was Lily’s words that truly caught him off guard, though. “You’re kind, Remus. If you ever need any help, please don’t hesitate to ask.” She paused, then grinned at him. “Although, I would prefer it if we could continue to do it when James and Sirius are still asleep.” Remus smiled back at that, and nodded. He left the library feeling decidedly accomplished, though still a bit strange, as though he had done something entirely for himself for the first time.</p>
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